Compare the2023 Mazda CX-50VS 2023 Subaru Forester

The Mazda CX-50 has standard driver and front passenger side knee airbags mounted low on the dashboard. These airbags helps prevent the driver and front passenger from sliding under their seatbelts or the main frontal airbags; this keeps them better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. Knee airbags also help keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Forester doesn’t offer a front passenger side knee airbag.

The CX-50 Turbo Premium Plus has a standard 360° Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Forester only offers a rear monitor and front and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the sides.

The CX-50 has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Forester’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the CX-50 has standard Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Rear Cross Traffic Braking on the Turbo Premium Plus automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Subaru charges extra for rear cross-path warning on the Forester and its not available on the Base.

Both the CX-50 and the Forester have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, driver knee airbags, side-impact head airbags, front seatbelt pretensioners, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, all wheel drive, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems and rearview cameras.

Side impacts caused 23% of all road fatalities in 2018, down from 29% in 2003, when the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety introduced its side barrier test. In order to continue improving vehicle safety, the IIHS has started using a more severe side impact test: 37 MPH (up from 31 MPH), with a 4180-pound barrier (up from 3300 pounds). The results of this newly developed test demonstrates that the Mazda CX-50 is safer than the Forester:

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Mazda vehicles are better in initial quality than Subaru vehicles. With 11 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Mazda higher than Subaru.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Mazda vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Mazda above average in long-term dependability. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, Subaru is rated below average.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2023 Auto Issue reports that Mazda vehicles are more reliable than Subaru vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Mazda fourth in overall reliability. Subaru is ranked 7th.

The CX-50’s standard 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 5 more horsepower (187 vs. 182) and 10 lbs.-ft. more torque (186 vs. 176) than the Forester’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder. The CX-50’s optional 2.5 turbo 4-cylinder produces 74 more horsepower (256 vs. 182) and 144 lbs.-ft. more torque (320 vs. 176) than the Forester’s 2.5 DOHC 4-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Mazda CX-50 4 cyl. is faster than the Subaru Forester:

On the EPA test cycle the CX-50 with its standard engine gets better fuel mileage than the Forester Wilderness (24 city/30 hwy vs. 25 city/28 hwy).

An engine control system that can shut down some of the engine’s cylinders helps improve the CX-50 (except Turbo)’s fuel efficiency. The Forester doesn’t offer a system that can shut down part of the engine.

For better stopping power the CX-50’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Forester:

The CX-50 stops much shorter than the Forester:

For better traction, the CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo’s tires are larger than the largest tires available on the Forester (245/45R20 vs. 225/60R17).

The CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo’s tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Forester Sport/Limited/Touring’s 55 series tires.

For better ride, handling and brake cooling the CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo has standard 20-inch wheels. The Forester’s largest wheels are only 18-inches.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the CX-50’s wheelbase is 5.7 inches longer than on the Forester (110.8 inches vs. 105.1 inches).

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the CX-50 is 3.6 inches wider in the front and 3.6 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Forester.

The CX-50 2.5 Turbo handles at .87 G’s, while the Forester Wilderness pulls only .77 G’s of cornering force in a Car and Driver skidpad test.

As tested by Car and Driver while at idle, the interior of the CX-50 2.5 Turbo is quieter than the Forester Limited (37 vs. 41 dB).

The CX-50 has a much larger cargo volume than the Forester with its rear seat up (31.4 vs. 28.9 cubic feet).

The CX-50’s cargo area is larger than the Forester’s in almost every dimension:

The CX-50’s standard towing capacity is much higher than the Forester’s (2000 vs. 1500 pounds). Maximum trailer towing in the Subaru Forester is only 3000 pounds. The CX-50 offers up to a 3500 lbs. towing capacity.

The CX-50 uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Forester uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo Premium has a standard heads-up display that projects speed, warning and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Forester doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The CX-50’s front and rear power windows all open or close fully with one touch of the switches, making it more convenient at drive-up windows and toll booths, or when talking with someone outside the car. The Forester’s standard passenger windows don’t open or close automatically. With the Forester Premium/Sport/Wilderness/Limited/Touring’s power windows, only the front windows open or close automatically.

On a hot day the CX-50’s driver can lower all the windows from a distance using the keyless remote. The driver of the Forester can only operate the windows from inside the vehicle, with the ignition on.

The CX-50’s rain-sensitive wipers adjust their speed and turn on and off automatically based on the amount of rainfall on the windshield. This allows the driver to concentrate on driving without constantly adjusting the wipers. The Forester’s manually variable intermittent wipers have to be constantly adjusted.

Consumer Reports rated the CX-50’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Forester’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

Standard air-conditioned seats in the CX-50 Premium Plus/Turbo Premium keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Forester doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Mazda CX-50 offers an optional wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Forester doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.